May 8, 1945: Children of Fingal Street celebrate VE Day
Victory in Europe (VE) Day was one that remained in the memory of all those who witnessed it.
On May 8, 1945, then Prime Minister Winston Churchill made an announcement on the radio at 3pm that the Second World War had come to an end, following Germany’s surrender the day before.
In towns and cities across the world, people marked the end to nearly six years of war with street parties, dancing and singing.
In Greenwich, eight-year-old Alan Bristow took his place at a long table beside the other children of Fingal Street.
Now aged 88, Mr Bristow recalls: “I remember feeling relieved.
“It was quite a frightening situation at the time.
“I remember the damp smell of being in a dug-out Anderson shelter, and seeing a candle flickering.
“During the war you would hear the odd explosion, the v2 rockets.
“My mum was walking down Annandale Road one day when a flying bomb landed in the allotments on the other side of the Blackwall Tunnel.”
Bunting and British flags hung above a banquet of biscuits, stacks of muffins and cups of tea balanced on saucers.
Mr Bristow said: “I remember eating my first banana on the day. The girl sat next to me, Betty English, had never seen one before.”
Having returned from evacuation, which saw him move across the country from Wales to Blechley and Barnstaple in North Devon, Mr Briston has fond memories of his childhood in Greenwich.

He said: “I lived at the corner of the street. The boy sat next to me, Derek Crow, lived in the flat below us.
“He was older than me so I believed everything he said. I really looked up to him.”
The children kept themselves entertained by clambering across the rubble of bomb sites.
Mr Bristow said: “We would have street wars where the top end of the street would attack the bottom end, and the occasional brick fight.
“They were quite happy days looking back.
“You could run forever. We would play in Greenwich park for hours.
“There were underground shelters near Denham Street too. It was all structure so you could get inside and walk around.”
After the war, Mr Bristow joined the G4 Greenwich Scout Group.
He said: “We would go down to Herne Bay in Kent for camping.
“On the way home we would pile into the back of a lorry – health and safety wouldn’t be very impressed with that today.”
Mr Bristow has lost touch with many of the children he sat beside on the day the war ended, but he still remembers almost every name.
VE Day 2025, on May 8, marks the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War.
Ahead of the celebration, the South London Press would like readers to get in touch with any pictures or memories of the day.
Pictured top: The children of Fingal Street celebrate VE Day on May 8, 1945 (Picture: Alan Bristow)